C-sections
Vegasbb
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Can we talk Pain Meds?
Vegasbb
member
in C-sections
I've only been on pain meds once in my life (vicadin for wisdom teeth) and it was a horrific experience. I'm hoping it was just an isolated experience and I won't react this way to whatever they give me post C-section. What were you given after the surgery to manage pain (morphine pump, oral meds, etc)? Did you have any bad reactions to it? How long were you on meds ?
DS1 : 10/2012
Due with B/G Twins July 2015
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Re: Can we talk Pain Meds?
With DS, they put some sort of slow-release pain med in my IV (or possibly injected it with the spinal, b/c my IV was out 2-3 hours after surgery). After that, it was prescription-strength ibuprofen and when the pain was really bad, vicodin. I'm sure if you tell them that you've had a bad reaction to vicodin in the past, they'll have other options for you.
Once I got home, I basically only took ibuprofen - I had a script for vicodin, which I filled, but I only took it before bed, and only for a couple of days.
I was on Roxicet (a generic of Percocet, I believe) and I got off of that as soon as possible. I had similar reaction to what I took after some other surgery awhile ago (don't remember what it was, but I think it also had oxycodone in it). Both gave me horrible dreams and made me feel really loopy, which is not good when you are already sleep deprived and need to attend to a newborn.
I stopped taking the Roxicet early...maybe around 5-7 days PP...and just went to the Ibuprofen (which is what I did after the other surgery, too).
I don't remember how long I took the Ibuprofen. A couple of weeks? My pain was manageable enough that I had to remind myself to take it. (Meaning, I'd eventually feel some dull pain, look at the clock, and realize I was past due.)
I think the first night I got morphine and nubain (actually for the itching). It was something IV, but I was too distracted by LO and too loopy to really care. I was not a fan of how I felt on it, but it controlled my pain that first night. My hospital does a spinal and does not do PCA pumps for c/s.
The next day when I started eating and drinking again I alternated norco (hydrocodone) and motrin, which were great. Norco apparently works really well for me- it controlled my pain, lasted a while, and didn't make me sick or loopy. I went home with those two, and took them a couple times a day until about a week pp- norco once in the morning and once at night, and motrin during the day. I don't think I took much past a week/week and a half pp. But I was also on my rear on the couch for most of the day for a couple weeks, so... I didn't exactly overexert myself
Everyone reacts differently to medications- if what you get first either doesn't control your pain or you can't tolerate the side effects, ask for something different! You should NOT be in pain or too out of it because of a medication when there are many options to try.
I can't remember what they gave me via IV. I do remember that it made me itch terribly. After the IV was taken out they gave me ibuprophen and percocet. I took the percocet for almost two weeks and continued on the Ibuprophen as needed for the next week.
With my first c-section I had a morphine pump for 24 hours after my section. I then had oral pain medication.The medication I was given was Oxycodone (SP?) and Motrin.
With my second c-section. I had a spinal an was given morphine in my spinal to help with the pain for 24 hours. It worked well. After that I was given oral pain meds Vicadin and Motrin.
I took both my pain meds until about 4-5 days after my c-section and then just as needed after that. Some days Motrin was enough other days by the end of the day I needed both pain meds. I stopped completely taking all medication by 2 weeks after.
I too had a bad experience with Vicadin after my wisdom teeth removal but this time it was much different.
I did have a morphine pump initially, but the nurse encouraged me not to use it if I didn't have to because I was puking from the anesthesia (We knew it was the anesthesia because I started vomiting in the OR right after the spinal block.) and the morphine could make the nausea worse. Of course, they couldn't give me oral pain meds until I stopped puking, so it was a vicious cycle for a while.
Once the vomiting was under control that evening, I alternated vicodin and ibuprofen every 4 hours. (Vicodin at 6, 10, 2; Ibuprofen at 8, 12, 4)
I didn't have any problems with the oral meds. By 4 days post-op, I was taking them as needed, which was normally at night. Around 7-8 days post-op, I stopped taking meds.
Vicodin is Hydrocodone, so if you had a reaction to that, you might want to ask for Oxycodone instead (don't freak, oxy doesn't=addictive). Tell your MD that up front.
I had my baby in Germany, where they just give you acetaminophen and ibuprophen. I really could have used a narcotic the first two days, when I was very sore from getting out of bed a lot to get baby, nurse baby, etc, but after that, I was fine with just ibuprophen.
DS born via unplanned C-section at 40w6d
#1 BFP 2/24/11 EDD 10/29/11 Born 11/1/11
(via emergency c-section due to prolapsed cord; dx with sensorineural hearing loss Feb 2012)
#2 BFP 9/13/12 EDD 5/20/13 Natural M/C 10/3/12
#3 BFP 11/13/12 EDD 7/27/13
i was on percocet and Aleve with my first not sure what they will be doing in 8 weeks time will tell I didnt have trouble with the percocet wasnt in much pain i think i only took 3 pills when i got to go home